Before the printing press it was not cheap to make a copy. Before the internet it was not free. So while at one time it was legal to copy it wasn't actually free.

Copyright was meant to balance things out and encourage creation. Legal or not, I do not think I have a right to take something for nothing against the rights holders will. Those that feel otherwise, that is thier choice.

On a far larger scale, the government of China can and does legally coopt an entire village despite protesters setting themselves on fire.http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/09/wo...anted=all&_r=0
Legal or not, I question whether it is at all ethical or right in either case.

In ancient times people created stories and and they were passed around freely. They existed virtually as copies in the minds of different people. A copy of the story was created when someone was listening to the story and it was created for free.